St. Louis Blues
|media_affiliates = FSN Midwest KMOX (1120 AM) |owner(s) = Sports Capital Partners (Dave Checketts) |general_manager = Doug Armstrong |head_coach = Craig Berube |captain = Alex Pietrangelo |minor_league_affiliates = Peoria Rivermen (AHL) Alaska Aces (ECHL) |stanley_cup_champs = 1''' (2019 |presidents_trophies = '''1 (1999-2000) |conference_champs = 1''' 2018-19 |division_champs = '''7 (1968–69, 1969–70, 1976–77, 1980–81, 1984–85, 1986–87, 1999–00) |off_web = blues |ice_rink = |home = |away = |alt = |typen = 2 |type1 = Blues |type2 = Blues outline }} The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). The team is named after the famous W. C. Handy song "St. Louis Blues", and plays in the 19,150-seat Enterprise Center in downtown St. Louis. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the expansion teams during the league's original expansion from six to twelve teams. The Blues qualified for the playoffs in all but nine of their 52 seasons, appeared in the Stanley Cup Finals four times, and won the Stanley Cup in 2019. Their 42 playoff appearances are the most for any non-Original Six NHL team, although the franchise struggled in the postseason throughout much of their history. While they made the Stanley Cup Finals in each of their first three seasons, they were swept each time. With the Blues' victory in their fourth Stanley Cup Final, 49 years after their last appearance and in their 52nd year of existence, they became the final active team from the 1967 expansion to win their first Stanley Cup in 2019. The Blues have a rivalry with the Chicago Blackhawks, with both teams having played in the same division since 1970. The San Antonio Rampage of the American Hockey League (AHL) and the Tulsa Oilers of the ECHL are the two minor league affiliates of the Blues. Franchise history Early history (1967–70) The Blues were one of the six teams added to the NHL in the 1967 expansion, along with the Minnesota North Stars, Los Angeles Kings, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins and California Seals. St. Louis was the last of the expansion teams to officially gain entry into the league, chosen over Baltimore at the insistence of the Chicago Blackhawks. At the time, the Blackhawks were (and still are) owned by the influential Wirtz family of Chicago, which also owned the then-decrepit St. Louis Arena. The Wirtzes sought to unload the Arena, which had not been well-maintained since the 1940s, and thus pressed the NHL to give St. Louis (which had never even submitted a formal expansion bid) a franchise over Baltimore. The team's first owners were insurance tycoon Sid Salomon Jr., his son, Sid Salomon III, and Robert L. Wolfson, who were granted the franchise in 1966. Sid Salomon III convinced his initially wary father to make a bid for the team. Salomon then spent several million dollars on massive renovations for the 38-year-old Arena, which increased the number of seats from 12,000 to 15,000. The Blues were originally coached by Lynn Patrick who, after a quick resignation, was replaced by Scotty Bowman. Although the league's rules effectively kept star players with the Original Six teams, the Blues managed to stand out in the inferior Western Division. Capitalizing on a playoff format that required an expansion team to make it to the Stanley Cup Finals, the Blues reached the final round each of their first three seasons, though they were swept first by the Montreal Canadiens in 1968 and 1969 and then by the Boston Bruins in 1970. While the first Blues' teams included aging and faded veterans like Doug Harvey, Don McKenney and Dickie Moore, the veteran goaltending tandem of Glenn Hall and Jacques Plante proved more durable, winning a Vezina Trophy in 1969 behind a sterling defense that featured players like skilled defensive forward Jim Roberts and hardrock brothers Bob and Barclay Plager. Phil Goyette won the Lady Byng Trophy for the Blues in 1970 and New York Rangers castoff Red Berenson became the expansion team's first major star at center. The Arena quickly became one of the loudest buildings in the NHL, a reputation it maintained throughout its tenure as the Blues' home. During that time, Salomon gained a reputation throughout the league as the ultimate players' owner. He gave his players cars, signed them to deferred contracts, and treated them to vacations in Florida. The players, used to being treated like mere commodities, felt the only way they could pay him back was to give their best on the ice every night. The Blues' struggles (1970–77) The Blues' successes in the late 1960s, however, did not continue into the 1970s as the playoff format changed and the Chicago Blackhawks were moved into the still inferior Western Division. The Blues lost Bowman, who went to Montreal following a power-sharing dispute with Sid Salomon III (who was taking an increasing role in team affairs), as well as Hall, Plante, Goyette, and ultimately Berenson, who were lost to retirement or trade. The Berenson trade, however, did bring then-Red Wings star center Garry Unger, who ultimately scored 30 goals in eight consecutive seasons while breaking the NHL's consecutive games played record. Defensively, however, the Blues were less than stellar and saw Chicago and the Philadelphia Flyers overtake the division. After missing the playoffs for the first time in 1973–74, the Blues ended up in the Smythe Division after a realignment. This division, too, was particularly weak, and in 1976–77 the Blues won it while finishing five games below .500, though this would be their last playoff appearance in the decade. In the meantime, the franchise was on the brink of financial collapse. This was partly due to the pressures of the World Hockey Association, but mostly the result of financial decisions made when the Salomons first acquired the franchise. Deferred contracts came due just as the Blues' performance began to slip. At one point, the Salomons cut the team's staff down to three employees. One of them was Emile Francis, who served as team president, general manager and coach. Purina era (1977–83) The Salomons finally found a buyer in St. Louis-based pet food giant Ralston Purina in 1977, who renamed the Arena "the Checkerdome." Francis and minority owner Wolfson helped put together the deal with Ralston Purina, which ensured that the Blues would stay in St. Louis. Only a year after finishing with only 18 wins (still the worst season in franchise history), the Blues made the playoffs in 1980, the first of 25 consecutive post-season appearances. The team's improvement continued into 1981, when the Berenson-coached team, led by Wayne Babych (54 goals), future Hall of Famer Bernie Federko (104 points), Brian Sutter (35 goals), and goaltender Mike Liut (second to Wayne Gretzky for the Hart Trophy), finished with 45 wins and 107 points, the second-best record in the league. Their regular-season success, however, did not transfer into the playoffs, as they were eliminated by the New York Rangers in the quarterfinals. The Blues followed their generally successful 1980–81 campaign with two consecutive sub-.500 seasons, though they still managed to make playoffs each year. Purina lost an estimated $1.8 million a year during its ownership of the Blues, but took the losses philosophically, having taken over out of a sense of civic responsibility. In 1983, Purina's longtime chairman, R. Hal Dean, retired. His successor wanted to refocus on the core pet food business, and had no interest in hockey. He only saw a division that was bleeding money, and put the Blues on the market. The Blues did not pick anyone in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft because Purina did not send a representative; the company basically abandoned the team. It finally found a buyer in a group of investors led by WHA and Edmonton Oilers founder Bill Hunter, who then made plans to move the team to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. However, the NHL was unwilling to lose a market as large as St. Louis and vetoed the deal. Purina then padlocked the Checkerdome and turned the team over to the league. The team appeared destined for contraction when, on July 27, 1983, Harry Ornest, a Los Angeles-based businessman, came in at the 11th hour to save the franchise. Ornest immediately renamed the Checkerdome back to the St. Louis Arena. Road to a new arena (1983–96) Ornest ran the Blues on a shoestring budget. However, the players did not mind, because (according to Sutter) they badly wanted to stay in St. Louis. For instance, he asked many players to defer their salaries to help meet operating costs, but they always got paid in the end. During most of his tenure, the Blues had only 26 players under contract – 23 in St. Louis, plus three on their farm team in Montana. Most NHL teams during the mid-1980s had over 60 players under contract. Despite being run on the cheap, the Blues remained competitive even though they never finished more than six games over .500 in Ornest's three years as owner. During this time, Doug Gilmour, drafted by St. Louis in 1982, emerged as a star. However, while the Blues remained competitive, they were unable to keep many of their young players. More often than not, several of the Blues' young guns ended up as Calgary Flames, and the sight of Flames executive Al MacNeil was always greeted with dread. In fact, several of the Blues' young stars, such as Rob Ramage and Gilmour, were main cogs in the Flames' 1989 Stanley Cup win. Sutter and Federko were probably the only untouchables. By 1986, the team reached the Campbell Conference Finals against the Flames. Doug Wickenheiser's overtime goal in Game 6 to cap a furious comeback remains one of the greatest moments in team history (known locally as the "Monday Night Miracle"), but the Blues lost Game 7, 2–1. After that season, Ornest sold the team to a group led by St. Louis businessman Michael Shanahan. St. Louis kept chugging along through the late 1980s and early 1990s. General manager Ron Caron made astute moves, landing forwards Brett Hull, Adam Oates and Brendan Shanahan, defenseman Al MacInnis, and goaltender Grant Fuhr, among others. While the Blues contended during this time period, they never passed the second round of the playoffs. Still, their on-ice success was enough for a consortium of 19 companies to buy the team. They also provided the capital to build the Kiel Center (now the Enterprise Center), which opened in 1994. Hull, nicknamed the "Golden Brett" (a reference to his father, NHL legend Bobby Hull, who was nicknamed the "Golden Jet"), became one of the league's top superstars and a scoring sensation, netting 86 goals in 1990–91 en route to earning the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's most valuable player. Hull's 86 goals set the record for most goals in a single season by a right-winger and placed him third for most tallies in a single season for any position; only Wayne Gretzky has scored more (notching 92 in 1981–82 and 87 in 1983–84). Mario Lemieux previously held that distinction, having notched 85 goals in 76 games during the 1988–89 season. Also, only Gretzky found the net more than Hull during any given three-year period. Despite posting the second-best regular-season record in the entire league in 1990–91, the Blues lost in the second round of the playoffs to the Minnesota North Stars, a defeat that was symbolic of St. Louis' playoff struggles. From President's Trophy to struggling times (1997–2006) Mike Keenan was hired as both general manager and coach prior to the abbreviated 1995 season, with the hope that he could cure the post-season turmoil Blues fans had endured for years. Keenan instituted major changes, including trades that sent away fan favorites Brendan Shanahan and Curtis Joseph, as well as the acquisition of the legendary but aging Gretzky and goalie Grant Fuhr, both from the declining Los Angeles Kings (Gretzky left for the New York Rangers as an unrestricted free agent following the season). In spite of all he was prophesied to accomplish, Keenan's playoff resume with St. Louis included a first-round exit in 1995 and a second-round exit in 1996, and he was fired on December 19, 1996. Caron was reinstated as interim general manager for the rest of season, and GM Larry Pleau was hired on June 9, 1997. But that did not stop Hull, who had a lengthy feud with Keenan, from leaving for the Dallas Stars in 1998. He went on to win the Stanley Cup with the Stars the next year, scoring a controversial goal on Buffalo's Dominik Hasek to clinch the Cup for Dallas. Defensemen Chris Pronger (acquired from the Hartford Whalers in 1995 for Shanahan), Pavol Demitra, Pierre Turgeon, Al MacInnis, and goalie Roman Turek kept the Blues a contender. In 1999–2000, they notched a franchise-record 114 points during the regular season, earning the Presidents' Trophy for the league's best record. However, they were stunned by the San Jose Sharks in the first round in seven games. In 2001, the Blues advanced to the Western Conference Finals before bowing out in five games to eventual Champions Colorado Avalanche. They remained competitive for the next three years, but never got past the second round. Despite years of mediocrity and the stigma of never being able to "take the next step", the Blues were a playoff presence every year from 1980 to 2004 — the third longest streak in North American professional sports history. Amid several questionable personnel moves and an unstable ownership situation, the Blues finished the 2005–06 season with their worst record in 27 years. They missed the playoffs for only the fourth time in franchise history. Also, for the first time in club history, the normally excellent support seen by St. Louisans began to fade away, with crowds normally numbering around 12,000, a far cry from the team's normal high (about 18,000 in a 19,500 seat arena). Wal-Mart heir Nancy Walton Laurie and her husband Bill purchased the Blues in 1999. On June 17, 2005, the Lauries announced that they would sell the team. Bill Laurie, a former point guard at Memphis State, had long desired to buy an NBA team, and it was thought that this desire caused him to neglect the Blues. On September 29, 2005, it was announced that the Lauries had signed an agreement to sell the Blues to SCP Worldwide, a consulting and investment group headed by former Madison Square Garden president Dave Checketts. On November 14, 2005, the Blues announced that SCP Worldwide had officially withdrawn from negotiations to buy the team. On December 27, 2005, it was announced that the Blues had signed a letter of intent to exclusively negotiate with General Sports and Entertainment, LLC. However, after the period of exclusivity, SCP entered the picture again. On March 24, 2006, the Lauries completed the sale of the Blues and the lease to the Savvis Center to SCP and TowerBrook Capital Partners, L.P., a private equity firm. The Blues are currently the only team in the four major North American sports (ice hockey, basketball, baseball, and American football) to be owned by a private equity firm. Under new management, the Blues promptly installed John Davidson as president of hockey operations, moving Pleau to a mostly advisory role. The former Rangers goalie promptly made some big deals, picking up Jay McKee, Bill Guerin, and Manny Legace from free agency, and bringing Doug Weight back to St. Louis after a brief (and productive) stopover in Carolina. Weight was again traded in December 2007 to the Anaheim Ducks along with a minor league player in exchange for Andy McDonald. Davidson also installed a strong development program under head scout Jarmo Kekalainen, using the team's raft of high draft picks in 2006 and 2007 to select highly-touted prospects such as T. J. Oshie, Erik Johnson and David Perron. The rebuilding (2006–present) Following the disappointing 2005–06 season, which saw the Blues with the worst record in the NHL, the new management focused on rebuilding the franchise. At the beginning of the 2006–07 season, the Blues looked to be competitive in the Central Division. However, injuries plagued the team all season, and the lack of a sniper hampered them as well. Fan support was sluggish during the first half of the campaign, and the end of the calendar year was capped by an 11-game losing streak. On December 11, 2006, the Blues fired coach Mike Kitchen and replaced him with former Los Angeles Kings coach Andy Murray. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=188117&hubname=. On January 4, 2007, the Blues had a record of 6–1–3 in their previous 10 games, which was the best in the NHL during that stretch. Despite a healthy 24-point jump from the previous season, the strain of playing in a conference where seven teams finished with more than 100 points kept them out of the playoffs for the second year in a row. Immediately prior to the 2007 trade deadline, the Blues traded several key players, such as Bill Guerin, Keith Tkachuk and Dennis Wideman, to gain draft picks. (They later re-signed Tkachuk during the offseason.) Brad Boyes, picked up from the Bruins in exchange for Wideman, became the fastest Blues player to reach 40 goals since Brett Hull, doing so during the 2007–08 season. During the 2007 offseason, the Blues signed free agent Paul Kariya to a 3-year contract worth $18 million, re-signed defenseman Barret Jackman to a one-year contract, lost their captain Dallas Drake to the Detroit Red Wings, and traded prospect Carl Soderberg to the Boston Bruins in exchange for yet more depth in the goalie crease, Hannu Toivonen. On October 2, 2007, the Blues finalized the season starting roster, which included rookies David Perron, Steven Wagner and Erik Johnson. On October 10, 2007, the Blues introduced a new mascot: Louie the Bear. On December 14, 2007, the Blues traded Doug Weight, a 38 year old four-time All Star center, to the Anaheim Ducks as part of a package to acquire 30-year old center Andy McDonald. As of December 22, 2007, the Blues telecast on FSN Midwest was estimated to be reaching 30,000 households per game. This is up 125% compared to the same time the previous season. On February 8, 2008, it was announced that, after going much of the season without a captain, defenseman Eric Brewer was chosen as the team's 19th captain.http://blues.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=352757&page=NewsPage&service=page On February 26, 2008, the Blues traded veteran defenseman Bryce Salvador to the New Jersey Devils for enforcer, and St. Louis native, Cam Janssen. He made his debut two days later, wearing #55 against the Phoenix Coyotes. After spending the first half of the 2008–09 season at or near the bottom of the Western Conference, the Blues began to turn things around behind the solid goaltending of Chris Mason. After an astounding second half run, the Blues made the playoffs on April 10, 2009 by defeating the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-1. On April 12, the Blues clinched the 6th seed in the Western conference with a 1-0 win against Colorado. For the first time in 5 years (that is, since the lockout), the Blues were in the playoffs. They faced the #3 seeded Vancouver Canucks in the 1st round. Despite the team's tremendous run to end the season, the Blues would ultimately lose the series in a quick 4-game sweep. The Blues relieved coach Andy Murray of his duties on January 2, 2010 after a below expectation record (17-17-6, 40 points), sitting in 12th place in the Conference. Especially galling were the frequent blown leads after two periods, and with the worst Home record (6-13-3) in the entire NHL. After his duties as interim coach for the rest of the 2009-2010 season, Davis Payne, was named the 23rd head coach in the Blues' history on April 14. Payne was the head coach of the Blues main farm team, the Peoria (IL) Rivermen of the American Hockey League.STL|home On January 19th 2013, the team signed free agent veteran Wade Redden. The following season, 2013–14, the team hit the 100-point mark for the sixth time in franchise history, and gained a franchise record of 52 wins. Their chance on winning the Central Division title, the top seed in the West, and the Presidents' Trophy would all evaporate, after they lost their final six games and wound up in second place in the Division, this time to the Colorado Avalanche. The slump haunted them, as they blew a 2–0 series lead to the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks, losing the first round series in six games. This marked the second-straight year the Blues lost in the first round of the playoffs to the reigning champions in six games after leading the series 2–0. In 2014–15, the Blues won their second Central Division championship in four years and faced the Minnesota Wild in round one of the 2015 playoffs. However, for the third-straight year, they lost in the first round and in six games. During the off-season, forward T. J. Oshie was traded to the Washington Capitals in exchange for Troy Brouwer. In 2015–16, the Blues finished in second place in the Central Division to the Dallas Stars. The Blues took on the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks in the first round series. The Blues jumped to a 3–1 series lead, but struggled in games 5 and 6. However, St. Louis ended their first round losing streak by beating Chicago 3–2 in game 7 of the series. The moved on to the next round, where they defeated the Dallas Stars in another seven-game series to advance to their first Western Conference Finals since 2001. The Blues season would come to an end at the hands of the San Jose Sharks, who eliminated them in six games. On June 13, 2016, it was announced that Mike Yeo would replace Hitchcock as head coach of the Blues following the 2016–17 season. The 2016 off-season saw big changes for the Blues, as team captain David Backes left the team to sign with the Boston Bruins, and goaltender Brian Elliott was traded to the Calgary Flames, while veteran forward Troy Brouwer also signed with Calgary as a free agent. Steve Ott also left the team, signing a free agent deal with the Red Wings. Jake Allen was now the starting goaltender for the Blues, while the team also signed former Nashville Predators backup Carter Hutton. Former Blues forward David Perron was brought back on a free agent deal, while defenseman Alex Pietrangelo was named team captain. The team started the season by posting a record of 10–1–2 in their first 13 home games. However, they only won three games on the road during the first two months of the season. Despite defeating the Blackhawks in the 2017 NHL Winter Classic by the score of 4–1, the Blues fired Hitchcock and promoted Yeo to head coach on February 1, 2017. Despite an impressive run into the end of the season, when they gained most points in the league from February 1, when Hitchcock was fired, to the end of the season, the Blues were eliminated in the second round by the Nashville Predators in six games. In the off-season for the 2017–18 season, the Blues would lose David Perron to the Vegas Golden Knights via Expansion Draft. They would also pick up Brayden Schenn from the Philadelphia Flyers by giving away Jori Lehtera. Before the season began, the Blues were hit hard with injuries as they lost Robby Fabbri before the season began. Other players like Patrik Berglund, and Alex Steen did not return for the season in time. Despite these losses, the Blues raced out to a 21–8–2 start in their first 31 games. The Blues lost more players as Jay Bouwmeester suffered a season ending injury, and Jaden Schwartz missed a large portion of the season. The Blues also dealt away Paul Stastny to the Winnipeg Jets at the trade deadline for their 1st round pick as they won only 23 games of their remaining 51, but they still had a chance to get into the playoffs on the last day of their season against the Colorado Avalanche. After losing Vladimir Tarasenko to injury during the game, the Blues lost to the Avalanche 5–2 as they missed the playoffs for the first time in seven years. During the 2018 NHL off-season, the Blues acquired forward Ryan O'Reilly from the Buffalo Sabres via trade and re-signed Perron to a third stint with the team in free agency, while also signing forwards Tyler Bozak and St. Louis native Pat Maroon and goaltender Chad Johnson. On November 19, 2018, the Blues fired head coach Mike Yeo after starting the season with a 7–9–3 record and replaced him with Craig Berube on an interim basis. On March 29, 2019, the Blues became the seventh team in NHL since the 1967–68 season to qualify for the playoffs after being placed last after January 1. On May 21, the Blues advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1970, defeating the San Jose Sharks in a six-game Western Conference Finals' series. On May 29, the Blues won a Stanley Cup Finals series' game for the first time in franchise history after getting swept in three previous series (1968–1970), when they defeated the Boston Bruins 3–2 in overtime. On June 12, 2019, the Blues defeated the Bruins 4–1 in Game 7 to win their first ever Stanley Cup. Up until that point, the Blues was the oldest franchise to never win the Stanley Cup; the team was were also the last of the surviving 1967 expansion teams to win the Cup for the first time. Team information Arena The Blues play in the 19,150 (not counting standing room) capacity Enterprise Center, where they have played since 1994. Previously the team played in the St. Louis Arena (known as The Checkerdome from 1977 until 1983), where the old St. Louis Eagles played, and which the original owners had to buy as a condition of the 1967 NHL expansion. Jerseys Like all NHL teams, the Blues updated their jerseys for the 2007–08 season with new Rbk Edge jerseys. The Blues simplified their design compared to previous jerseys, with only the blue note logo on the front. There were no third jerseys for the 2007–08 season, however, the Blues announced plans for a navy third jersey featuring a new logo. The new logo includes the Gateway Arch with the Blue Note superimposed over it inside a circle with the words "St. Louis" above and "Blues" below. The third jersey was unveiled on September 21, 2008, and debuted during a Blues' home game against the Anaheim Ducks on November 21, 2008. Mascot Louie is the current mascot of the St. Louis Blues. He was introduced on October 10, 2007, and on November 3, 2007, the fans voted on his name on the Blues website. Radio and television KMOX radio and KPLR television were the initial broadcast outlets for the Blues upon their founding, with team patron Gus Kyle commentating on the games alongside St Louis broadcasting legend Jack Buck. Buck elected to leave the booth after one season, though, and he was replaced by another famed announcer in Dan Kelly. This setup—Kelly as commentator, with either Gus Kyle, Bob Plager, or Noel Picard (whose heavy French-Canadian accent became famous, such as calling owner Sid Salomon III "Sid the Turd" instead of "Third") joining as an analyst, simulcast on KMOX and KPLR—continued through the 1975-76 season, then simulcast on KMOX and KDNL for the next 3 seasons. From 1979-1981, the radio and television broadcasts were separated for the first time since the inaugural season, with Kelly doing the radio broadcasts and Eli Gold hired to do the television. Following the 1980-81 season, the television broadcasts moved from KDNL-TV 30, the Blues' TV home for the previous five seasons, to KSDK-TV Channel 5, St. Louis' NBC-affiliate for one year (1981-82), produced by Sports Network Incorporated (SNI), owned and operated by Greg Maracek who did the broadcasts with Channel 5 sportscaster Ron Jacober. The broadcasts failed to produce a profit and then returned to KPLR for the 1982-83 season before returning to KDNL Channel 30 (currently St. Louis' ABC-affiliate) for the 1983-84 season, the first under the ownership of Harry Ornest. The Blues skated back to KPLR three years later. In 1985, Ornest, wanting more broadcast revenue, put the radio rights up for bid. A new company who had purchased KXOK AM 630 won the bid for a three year contract and Kelly moved over from KMOX to do the games on KXOK. However, the station was never financially competitive in the market, fans complained they couldn't hear the station in parts of the market and the contract was given up by KXOK after just 2 years and immediately when back to KMOX who held the rights until 2000. Dan Kelly continued to broadcast the games on radio but was diagnosed in the summer of 1988 with lung cancer and died on Feb. 10, 1989. After his death, Ron Jacober (who had left Channel 5 to be KXOK's sports director in 1985 then left for KMOX in 1987) finished the season as the radio play by play announcer and was succeeded in that position by John Kelly. Ken Wilson continued the television broadcasts after Kelly's death with former Blues' players Joe Micheletti and Bruce Affleck. During this time from 1989-2000, more games began to be aired on Prime Sports Midwest, the forerunner to today's Fox Sports Midwest. The long-term partnership between KMOX and the Blues had its problems, however, namely during spring when the ever-popular St. Louis Cardinals began their seasons. Blues games, many of which were crucial to playoff berths, would often be pre-empted for spring training coverage. Angry at having to play "second fiddle", the Blues elected to leave for KTRS radio in 2000. However, in an ironic twist the Cards purchased a controlling interest in KTRS in 2005, and once again preferred to air pre-season baseball over regular-season hockey. In response, the Blues moved back to KMOX starting in the 2006–07 season. The season of 2008-09 saw the Blues play their last game on KPLR, which had the rights since the 1986-87 season (except for the 1996-97 season on St. Louis' CBS-affiliate KMOV), electing to move all their games to FS Midwest, starting with the 2009-10 season. Currently, Chris Kerber and Joe Vitale are the radio broadcast team. John Kelly (son of Dan) and Darren Pang handle television coverage, along with rinkside reporter Bernie Federko, and Scott Warmann and Terry Yake, and Jamie Rivers handle pregame and post-game shows. Traditions The Blues have a tradition of playing an organ rendition of W. C. Handy's "St. Louis Blues" at the start of every period and "When the Saints Go Marching In", although most long time fans replace the word 'Saints' with 'Blues', after a goal and at the end of the period. The Budweiser Theme "Here Comes The King" is still played during games on the organ also. A foghorn was added during the 1992-93 season at the St. Louis Arena and was carried over to The Kiel Center (currently known as Enterprise Center) in 1994. A late developing Blues tradition was the 5 goal tacos. Before the 2004–05 NHL lockout, the Blues advertised tacos for 35 cents at any local Taco Bell the day following a game in which the Blues scored five or more goals. Games in which the Blues had scored 4 goals were often accompanied by the "We Want Tacos!" chant in anticipation of a fifth goal (and thus 35 cent tacos the following day). Additionally, a series of five lighted boards along the upper deck of the Enterprise Center kept track of the number of goals. Following the lockout, the promotion was discontinued. The tradition was resurrected in a similar promotion during the 2007–2008 season. However, rather than 35 cent tacos, fans had to present their game tickets to receive 1 free taco from Enterprise Center the day following a Blues 5-goal game. In the 2008–09 season, it was announced that after a 5 goal game, fans in attendance would receive coupons for a free 12oz Blizzard at area St. Louis Dairy Queen restaurants. These coupons were attached to a limited edition player trading card which featured Blues stars, past and present. The promotion continued in 2009-10, but with a new restaurant sponsor (McDonald's) and therefore a new signature product (the Big Mac). The team also has a long tradition of fan-produced programs, sold outside the arena and providing an often biting, sarcastic, humor filled alternative to team/league produced periodicals. The longest-running fan publication, Game Night Revue, was created by a group of fans in the mold of the Chicago Blackhawks' Blue Line Magazine. It operated for over 10 years, from 1994 to 2005, when its owner decided not to resume the magazine after the 2004–05 NHL lockout (one final oversized "goodbye" issue was distributed the first two home games of the 2005-2006 season). After hockey resumed in 2005, a few months after GNR's final issue, a new publication, St. Louis Game Time, was formed by several former GNR staffers, as well as other fans who wanted to write. Priding itself on prospect coverage and a strong presence on the Internet, SLGT has built a loyal following among fans and even several players. The Blues also have the tradtion of the towel man. After every Blues goal the Towel Man will waive a towel followed by a chant of the number of goals the Blues have scored. The Towel Man will then throw a towel after ever Blues goal. Season-by-season record ''Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against'' :1 Season was shortened due to the 1994–95 NHL lockout. :2 As of the 2005–06 NHL season, all games will have a winner; the OTL column includes SOL (Shootout losses). :3 Season was shortened due to the 2012–13 NHL lockout. Notable players Current roster Team captains *Al Arbour, 1967–70, 1971 *Red Berenson, 1970–71, 1976, 1977–78 *Jim Roberts, 1971–72 *Barclay Plager, 1972–76 *Garry Unger, 1976–77 *Barry Gibbs, 1978–79 *Brian Sutter, 1979–88 *Bernie Federko, 1988–89 *Rick Meagher, 1989–90 *Scott Stevens, 1990–91 *Garth Butcher, 1991–92 *Brett Hull, 1992–95 *Shayne Corson, 1995–96 *Wayne Gretzky, 1996 *Chris Pronger, 1997–2003 *Al MacInnis, 2003–04 http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/nhl/blues/2003-09-15-captain_x.htm *Dallas Drake, 2005–07 *Eric Brewer, 2008–2010 *David Backes, 2011–2016 *Alex Pietrangelo, 2016–present Hall of Famers ;Players *Bernie Federko, C, 1976–89, inducted 2002 *Grant Fuhr, G, 1995–99, inducted 2003 *Wayne Gretzky, C, 1996, inducted 1999 *Glenn Hall, G, 1967–71, inducted 1975 *Doug Harvey, D, 1967–69, inducted 1973 *Dale Hawerchuk, C, 1995–96, inducted 2001 *Brett Hull, F, 1988–98, inducted 2009 *Guy Lapointe, D, 1981–84, inducted 1993 *Al MacInnis, D, 1994–2004, inducted 2007 *Dickie Moore, LW, 1967–68, inducted 1974 *Joe Mullen, F, 1979–86, inducted 2000 *Jacques Plante, G, 1968–70, inducted 1978 *Peter Stastny, C, 1993–95, inducted 1998 *Scott Stevens, D, 1990–91, inducted 2007 ;Broadcasters *Dan Kelly, play-by-play broadcaster, 1968–1989, inducted 1989 Retired numbers Officially retired *'2' Al MacInnis, D, 1994–2004, number retired April 9, 2006. *'3' Bob Gassoff, D, 1974–77, number retired October 1, 1977. *'8' Barclay Plager, D, 1967–77, number retired March 24, 1981. http://www.stlouisblues.com/news/0607/061204.html *'11' Brian Sutter, LW, 1976–88, number retired December 30, 1988. *'16' Brett Hull, RW, 1987–1998, number retired December 5, 2006. *'24' Bernie Federko, RW, 1976–89, number retired March 16, 1991. The Blues also recognize the NHL's retirement of 99 in honor of Wayne Gretzky. Honored numbers *'5' Bob Plager, D, 1967–78, number not officially retired but honored. *'14' Doug Wickenheiser, LW, 1984–87, number honored and unofficially retired *'No number' Dan Kelly, Broadcaster, 1968–89, recognized with an honorary shamrock that hangs from the rafters at Enterprise Center First-round draft picks *1968: Gary Edwards (6th overall) *1969: None *1970: None *1971: Gene Carr (4th overall) *1972: Wayne Merrick (9th overall) *1973: John Davidson (5th overall) *1974: None *1975: None *1976: Bernie Federko (7th overall) *1977: Scott Campbell (9th overall) *1978: Wayne Babych (3rd overall) *1979: Perry Turnbull (2nd overall) *1980: Rik Wilson (12th overall) *1981: Marty Ruff (20th overall) *1982: None *1983: Did not participate *1984: None *1985: None *1986: Jocelyn Lemieux (10th overall) *1987: Keith Osborne (12th overall) *1988: Rod Brind'Amour (9th overall) *1989: Jason Marshall (9th overall) *1990: None *1991: None *1992: None *1993: None *1994: None *1995: None *1996: Marty Reasoner (14th overall) *1997: None *1998: Christian Backman (24th overall) *1999: Barrett Jackman (17th overall) *2000: Jeff Taffe (30th overall) *2001: None *2002: None *2003: Shawn Belle (30th overall) *2004: Marek Schwarz (17th overall) *2005: T. J. Oshie (24th overall) *2006: Erik Johnson (1st overall) and Patrik Berglund (25th overall) *2007: Lars Eller (13th overall), Ian Cole (18th overall) and David Perron (26th overall) *2008: Alex Pietrangelo (4th overall) *2009: David Rundblad (17th overall) *2010: Jaden Schwartz (14th overall) & Vladimir Tarasenko (16th overall) Franchise scoring leaders These are the top-ten point-scorers in franchise history. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season. ''Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game; * = current Blues player'' NHL awards and trophies Presidents' Trophy *1999–2000 Clarence S. Campbell Bowl *1968–69, 1969–70 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy *Blake Dunlop: 1980–81 *Jamie McLennan: 1997–98 Calder Memorial Trophy *Barret Jackman: 2002–03 Conn Smythe Trophy *Glenn Hall: 1967–68 Frank J. Selke Trophy *Rick Meagher: 1989–90 Hart Memorial Trophy *Brett Hull: 1990–91 *Chris Pronger: 1999–2000 Jack Adams Award *Gordon "Red" Berenson: 1980–81 *Brian Sutter: 1990–91 *Joel Quenneville: 1999–2000 *Ken Hitchcock 201-2012 James Norris Memorial Trophy *Al MacInnis: 1998–99 *Chris Pronger: 1999–2000 King Clancy Memorial Trophy *Kelly Chase: 1997–98 Lady Byng Memorial Trophy *Phil Goyette: 1969–70 *Brett Hull: 1989–90 *Pavol Demitra: 1999–2000 Lester B. Pearson Award *Mike Liut: 1980–81 *Brett Hull: 1990–91 Lester Patrick Trophy *Larry Pleau: 2001–02 NHL Plus/Minus Award *Paul Cavallini: 1989–90 *Chris Pronger: 1997–98, 1999–00 Vezina Trophy *Glenn Hall and Jacques Plante: 1968–69 William M. Jennings Trophy *Roman Turek: 1999–2000 Franchise individual records *Most goals in a season: Brett Hull, 86 (1990–91) *Most assists in a season: Adam Oates, 90 (1990–91) *Most points in a season: Brett Hull, 131 (1990–91) *Most penalty minutes in a season: Bob Gassoff, 306 (1975–76) *Most points in a season, defenseman: Jeff Brown, 78 (1992–93) *Most points in a season, rookie: Jorgen Pettersson, 73 (1980–81) *Most wins in a season: Roman Turek, 42 (1999–00) *Most shutouts in a season: Glenn Hall, 8 (1968–69) *Lowest GAA in a season (min 30 GP): Roman Turek, 1.95 (1999–00) *Best SV% in a season (min 30 GP): Chris Mason, .916 (2008–09) http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=28818 See also *1967 NHL Expansion References External links *Official website of the St. Louis Blues *St. Louis Blues news from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch newspaper *Scottrade Center }} Category:American ice hockey teams Category:National Hockey League team Category:St. Louis Blues Category:Established in 1967 Category:National Hockey League teams Category:Ice hockey teams in Missouri